Final on a B Day

It’s a B-day on December 15 so we get to go home at 12:30. No, just kidding— we have a final to take first! Every other year, the schedule has stayed the same: finals are on their own days; we get out at 12 and wait until we take another final the next day

This year, the schedule has had a slight change. The first period final is right after a normal B day schedule, meaning we have three classes until we have to take a stressful final. But, why? The extra time in those classes is pointless and it is only going to stress us out even more.

By the time finals come, classes are pretty much over. We stop learning new material and the only thing left to do is review for the final; review is exactly what we should be focusing on. There is no point in having extra classes before the final to review for a different final than the one we are taking on that day. It makes no sense.

Some people may say that school is trying to help us get more review time for finals. This might be true, but reviewing for three finals before we take a final on a completely different subject is not going to help us at all.

Students study or review for finals in different ways. Teachers may think that they are giving us extra time in class to study for the final, but is there is only so much we can do in class. As students, we all study differently and having a teacher forcing us to study one specific way in not helpful. Some people study better in groups, or with art, or by speaking aloud.

Most of the time, studying at home is more beneficial. The students who review better or with the teacher always have the opportunity to do so. We do not need to school to control our study habits.

Thinking about several finals instead of focusing solely on one is just going to make us more stressed. If we review for three finals before taking the one we are going to be tested for, our minds will overload and we probably won’t do as well on the tested final. Finals are stressful enough on separate days, let alone in addition to three regular classes.

Kyra Fukawa, junior, says, “We want to spend all the time getting ready for the final instead of getting ready for the next B day. It makes no sense whatsoever.”

Priorities come into question. What is more important? The final test that we have been working all semester to ace or an extra 85 minutes of distracting study time?

This year, we got both Columbus Day and the Wednesday before Thanksgiving off. This might be why we are tacking on a final after a B-day schedule. Great! More vacation days! But what is more important? Having Columbus Day off or doing well on our final?

Placing a final after three classes is going to do nothing other than stress us out, as if we aren’t stressed out enough. The schedule should be changed back to the way it was before. There was nothing wrong with the schedule before. Why change something that was fine to begin with?

 

 

Pres Goes Greener

One thing that is completely certain about Pres is that we are obsessed with becoming eco-friendly, and as a school, we should be proud of our success. Our efforts at becoming eco-friendly are not being ignored—this summer, Presentation was recognized by PG & E for our endeavors at going green.

“The Presentation Sisters have always been very supportive and passionate about being green. Our mission flows from their lead,” said Mary Miller, principal. Our school is constantly trying to find ways to go green, which is obvious from the several changes that have been made to the school this summer.

The first thing students probably noticed when they came to school on August 15 was that we have new sliding doors. Besides the obvious convenience that the sliding doors provide to students who come to school laden down with backpacks and class projects, these new doors are great energy savers.

Normally, during the winter, the doors in the main building would be left open as people came in and out of the school, making it very inefficient for the heaters to keep the school warm. Since the sliding doors open and close as needed, heat stays inside, requiring less money and energy to warm up the school.

Though saving money is a good thing, “The money saved is less an issue than our desire to be responsible stewards of the environment–taking as little off the energy grid as possible,” said Ms. Miller.

Other developments to the buildings include brand-new dual pane windows, which help insulate the classrooms better than the old, single-pane windows, and new energy efficient lights.

Besides the administration, students and teachers are starting to catch the “going green” bug too, inspiring attempts to save as much paper as possible by doing things online. Moodle is the next big thing at Pres— a website that allows teachers to upload files such as calendars, PowerPoints, and handouts so students can access them on the Internet instead of using paper copies.

“Around 100 classes are already on Moodle,” said Ms. Renner, head of Presentation’s Technology Department. Though some teachers are not yet active in their use of Moodle, these roughly 100 class pages are up and ready to use on the website.

From there, teachers can have students enroll into their classes, distribute files, give assignments and quizzes, share blogs and videos, and even have students turn in homework and projects. It’s a work in progress, but expect much more interaction and efficiency with the website once they system is a little more settled and in regular use.

Pres has a fairly large faculty, and small actions make noticeable differences in our school’s environment. Mr. Buell is one example of a teacher who loves Moodle and has actively used it for all homework assignments since the first day of school.

He appreciates how it helps him be more organized—where he would normally have a desk stacked full of papers to grade, everything issystematically arranged on Moodle, where he can view, grade, and comment on students’ work.

“You can only access the K-drive at Pres, but you can access Moodle anywhere with Internet,” he said.

After just the first week of school, Mr. Buell notes, he has already saved 130 sheets of paper from handouts he would have given to students and homework that would have been turned in on paper.

Mrs. Stampfl also actively promotes saving paper, having increasing numbers of assignments submitted online in addition to the class blogs that have been on the Internet for the past few years.

This year, the AP French class’ workbook is online, and all workbook assignments are viewed, submitted, and graded on the Pearson website. Besides helping conserve the environment, going online makes it easier to organize homework for both teachers and students.

It’s a work in progress, but expect much more interaction and efficiency with the website once they system is a little more settled and in regular use.

Student initiatives to go green include the garden at Jenvey House run by the SEAS club. Club moderator Ms.Rahmig said, “It’s a way to show everyone that you can grow your own food.”

The 1,000 square foot garden contains everything from strawberries and tomatoes to squash, corn, and zucchini. The food that comes out of the garden— a bag or more of vegetables a week— goes to the girls who help work there. It provides the benefit of organic, home-grown vegetables, which is great for the environment.

The next time you use the new sliding doors at school or turn homework in on Moodle, keep in mind Pres’ efforts to become a more eco-friendly school and try to see what you can do to help. In the words of Ms. Miller: “It is simply the right thing to do.”

Prom Facebook Group

Students at Presentation High School have one less thing to worry about during Prom this year: wearing the same dress as someone else. A new Facebook group called “Prom Dresses 2011″ is saving girls the stress and anxiety of worrying about wearing the same dress as someone else at Prom this year.

This group was created by Presentation’s own senior Emily Wallace. The group is very simple and helpful for all the juniors and seniors going to Presentation’s Prom on May 14.

When a girl finds the prom dress she plans to wear, she takes a picture of it and posts it onto the group wall for all the other group members to see. All members of the group can then make comments and give their opinions on the dress.

Best of all – other students can make sure they do not buy the same dress. Prom is filled with more than enough stress, and this simple and easy process takes some of the anxiety away.

Because it’s important for students to remember the rules, this helpful Facebook group also provides the rules and regulations for dresses that students must follow to prevent being removed from the dance or receiving a detention. With this simple and easy process girls can take some of the stress of Prom away and make sure that they truly shine in their dress on that special day.

Many students are already a member of this group, including juniors Isabella Nguyen and Diborah Wubshet, who found the site helpful.

“I looked back at it each time I found a new dress to make sure I didn’t buy another person’s dress,” Wubshet said. “I really appreciated my friend’s comments, which helped me decide which dress to buy for prom without actually having to wait to ask them what they think.”

When asked about the difficulty of uploading a picture in the group she said, “It was really easy to post in the group all I had to do was upload a picture or you could just post a link on the group wall.”

So if you’re not a member yet, just ask one of your friends to add you and let the anxiety slip away.

Presentation Going Green

Presentation is leading the way towards becoming a “greener” high school in a variety of ways from creating online class websites to utilizing an efficient paper recycling system. When you take a look around school, what do you see? It may be the simple recycling bins or the homework assignments written on recycled paper, but we have all noticed the many ways Pres has gone green. Presentation is taking care of the environment one step at a time.

On those hot afternoons, you have probably noticed that the old building relies on fans to cool the rooms down. Although at times we may wish for cool air, think about how much energy we are saving by not installing an air conditioning system. Pres has also gone green with the installation of the double glass pane windows. The windows keep out the cold on winter mornings and try to maintain the cool on those blistering summer afternoons.

When you walk through the halls during fourth period or at lunch, you may notice that the lights are off in the halls. By turning off the lights, the school is staying cooler, and we are conserving energy by using less electricity.

Pres is all about the idea of reducing, reusing and recycling. If you have tried to print something in Room 14, you may have noticed that there is already writing on one side of your paper. Room 14 reuses all the paper that most schools would throw away. By reusing the paper, we are saving a lot of trees from being cut down in order to supply our school with the needed amount of paper.

Similarly, if you’ve taken Mr. Case’s class, you’ve used his class information website. By posting the homework and sources on their websites, teachers are saving paper and providing students with easy access to important information.
Also, Pres recently stopped sending quarterly report cards; instead, students can now see them on their Powerschool accounts. When the school does not send out report cards they save a lot of paper! Next time you need to print a homework assignment or class notes, try printing double-sided or make sure to use the recycled paper.

Another green part of Presentation are the many recycle bins scattered around the school. Using these is just as simple as throwing any other piece of trash away. They accept tin cans, water bottles and glass bottles and turn them in to be recycled.
One major addition to our school was the water machine installed in the center. Students now bring their own reusable water bottle and can refill it as many times as they need with free water and ice. Our school also no longer offers plastic water bottles for sale in the center in order to reduce the amount of plastic being used at the school.

Presentation has also gone green with the use of a natural gas generator, which has multiple uses. It not only heats up the pool for the swimmers on those cold winter days, but it also creates energy for the school to use. According to Mr. Atkinson, facilities manager, the generator produces 65 percent of the school’s electricity per year. Instead of using raw energy, the generator is making Pres a little bit greener and taking up less of the environment’s resources. Although it may cost a little extra in the beginning, in the long run the generator has given Pres more than we could have asked for.
Although we are extremely green, there are many other things our school can do to help the environment. For example, there are many versions of solar panels that store energy and use the sun to power large buildings. Solar panels are expensive, but in the long run they result in a lower electric bill and a better environment.

Another way we can be green is by creating a carpool list. Carpools mean that fewer students will be driving to school, which means fewer gas emissions going into the air. While freshman are given a list of all students’ addresses, it is sometimes hard to coordinate a full-functioning carpool arrangment given the craziness of most Pres girls’ schedules. Fortunately, with a little flexibility, it could be done.
Presentation is all about being green and putting our motto “Not words but deeds” into action. So the next time you have an extra tin can, be sure to drop it into a recycle bin and do your part through environmentally friendly actions.

Mag Drive Push Too Hard?

It is safe to say that most students at our school truly love Pres. It is also safe to say they would make some changes to the school if they could. Where does the money come from to make these changes? The ever-popular magazine drive.  Though girls love to read magazines, selling them is an entirely different story if your homeroom teacher is mag drive crazy. Some teachers go to such great lengths to make their students sell mags that they wind up scaring the girls off. Intense mag drive teachers, (or should I say Mag Maniacs,) are too harsh on students and make Pres girls dread the fundraiser rather than enjoy it.

I understand first-hand that not all students are willing to cooperate with magazine drive, but for the most part, I believe that students truly try their best.  It is completely unnecessary to take extreme measures in order to get Pres girls to sell mags. Different teachers use different approaches to become top homeroom and get his or her students to sell, sell sell!

One popular tactic some homeroom teachers use is the contract. Students sign a paper saying they promise to sell a certain amount of magazines. I think this is the farthest a tactic should go. Anything beyond committing oneself to a contract seems ridiculous and almost wrong. Being bound to a contract will get magazines sold and will not threaten the students.

Some Mag Maniacs choose to take privileges away from students, such as not being allowed to eat in homeroom, if they do not sell a certain amount of magazines. This policy seems rather unfair, since homeroom is generally the only class students are allowed to eat in. Not only does it single out a student, but it takes away a universal right that Presentation has established. Having privileges taken away does not directly relate to magazine drive and therefore should not be included in influencing students to sell magazines.

The worst and final tactic used by some homeroom teachers is to call students out and neglect them in class. When students do not bring in the goal amount of money, teachers will go to extreme measures to make them regret it. Some students recall feeling humiliated by the teacher and became rather uncomfortable for the rest of the year in homeroom. Other students are embarrassed to feel called out during the homeroom period for not bringing in their orders. It is unrealistic that every girl will bring in the amount of magazine orders they promised to, and that does not make them a bad person whom deserves ridicule. Such threats, I believe, should be against the rules of magazine drive so that students do not feel pressured and scared, but rather excited and willing.

In the end, the whole point of the drive is to motivate students to raise money for our school. In the past few years, motivation has been completely out ruled by harsh techniques that the thought of mag drive makes students sick. They should be happy to compete in a healthy way to raise the most money, instead of scared that her homeroom teacher will punish her. The bottom line about teenage girls is the nicer one is to them, but more they will cooperate. The more ruthless one is to them, the more they will neglect there responsibilities. If Mag Maniacs agree to soften their strategies, our school will raise much more money and be happy to do so.

French Revolution

Someone should have included a fair warning. Someone should have pulled them aside before they boarded the plane and irreversibly left. Someone should have broadcasted the information loud in clear in the simplest way so that even an eight-year-old would have understood. Someone should have said something. Surely, they deserved one.

But nobody did.

In some ways, no one can be blamed for neglecting to warn the French male exchange students. It is a perplexing situation they bring to our Pres community. Their presence guarantees hundreds of girls a cultural experience, but is it the right kind? It seems that if the Frenchies were to truly experience authentic Pres culture, they would see us in all our messy-haired, slipper-wearing, makeup-free glory.  But instead, our guests are met with clusters of preening girls in and out of the classrooms during the days they are here.

It’s pretty funny to watch.  Every year as winter starts to blend in spring, the unsuspecting male French students come to Pres. They come unaware of the revolution they will start. It starts before their first footsteps even fall upon the girls-only school grounds. Once the announcement that they, those celebrated male exchange students, are coming, the student body reacts as if someone has just announced that tomorrow will be an extra day off. An excited buzz electrifies conversations in the halls as students file out and go home. The topic is obvious: Do you know who’s hosting a guy this year? Do you think there’s going to be any cute ones? O-M-G, what should I wear?!

Some students will go home to iron and straighten those long ago softened pleats of their plaid skirts. Others will actually finish homework in time and sleep early as they set their alarms an extra fifteen to thirty minutes early. Carefully applied eyeshadow will be applied to hide those dark, baggy effects from the last minute cramming of integrals, anaphase and comma rules. Unruly hair that hasn’t met a hairbrush since Christmas will be tackled. Legs will be shaven for the first time since Black and White.  Rather than spontaneous and unconcerned attire, girls suddenly care.

After all, the day the French exchange students arrive will not be any ordinary day. No, out of 180 school days, the next day will be the first of five or so days when those of the male, teenage species can freely roam the halls. For the Pres student body, it is as much of a culture shock as it for our guests. The halls are forbidden territory for most of the teenage population with a Y chromosome.  Those brave souls who attempt to breach the borders of the foyer doors are usually politely shown the way back out. But, no, these French exchange boys will be met with not the exit door, but teachers asking for introductions as if they were a shadow. For the students, the fact that these boys are French adds a sweet flair like the addition of chocolate to an ordinary croissant. There is mystery! There is allure! And oh la la, they speak the language of love!

The causes of this one-week revolution of the Pres student body do not know that they are the cause, however. The male French exchange students innocently come wandering into our halls one not-so average morning. They see girls with shining brushed hair, ironed skirts, and shaved legs. For them, this is the average Pres girl. They have not seen what was before their arrival to know what average, pre-exchange-students Pres culture is truly like.  In the next few days, these unsuspecting boys will see the polished Pres girls as they slow down in the hallways to catch a glimpse of their male faces. There will be girls the boys have never met greeting them suddenly by name in the center during lunch. More girls they have never met will ask if they can take a picture with them.

So what’s the solution?  Could Mrs. Stampfl make the arrival of the French students a surprise?  Given that she has to arrange housing for all of them, probably not. Could the teachers be allowed to give detentions for excessive giggling or hair-tossing?  That seems pretty unlikely, too.

But what if Pres allowed more male teenagers – and American ones, not just French – into the Presentation culture? What if we didn’t freak out every time a guy stepped onto the front lawn?  What if, instead of showing them the door, we welcomed them and stopped treating them like potential threats to our chastity?  Constant exposure to the teenage male presence would lessen the dramatic reactions of male students on campus. Our palms could stop suspiciously getting damp. We could stop giggling hysterically when a male voice answers a question in class.

But since allowing boys on campus isn’t on the agenda, for now, all we have is our two weeks where French boys think that Pres girls are silly, pretty, flirtatious and empty-headed.  And isn’t that the kind of culture we should be fostering?

Let the French Revolution begin.

AP Gov Rap

Blog: Georgia Trip Updates

Day 3

On the last day of the trip, Sunday, the Pres girls joined thousands of social justice advocates at the SOAWatch vigil on Fort Benning Road. Thousands of people gathered on the road leading to the gates to protest and stand “presente” to the victims of SOA graduates. Before the vigil began, four people jumped the fence onto the fort in civil disobedience. These four will face jail time while none of the SOA graduates have ever been investigated for their crimes.

The vigil was more like a parade; each person comes with white cross which has a name of a victim written on it and each person has time to put the cross on the gate of Fort Benning. Because bringing a wooden cross on an airplane is a safety hazard, we made a paper chain with our favorite quotes. The parade marched in U-shape, along the sides of the street and the fence. While the crowd rotated around the fence, the thousands of victims’ names are read and the crowd responded with “presente” and raising their white cross. Vendors with organic-cotton t-shirts and political buttons lined the streets.

When we finally reached the gate, we hung our colorful paper chain with the innumerable white crosses on the gates of Fort Benning. After, I stood back and looked at the white-covered fence. Then, it hit me that each one of those crosses were not just pieces of wood; they were lives, lives taken for no apparent reason by men trained beyond the gates where I stood. At that moment I was overwhelmed with the reality of the proximity of the school, the representation of the crosses, and the numerous names being read in the background.  As I stood there in awe, something inside of me changed. I realized that this school is not something that cannot be ignored and that I was going to be the voice of the voiceless.

On my way home I reflected on the experiences of the trip. I recognized that I emerged from Georgia a different person. My heart and mind was pulled in so many ways over the weekend that I was transformed into a person of better faith and greater love.

Day 2

On November 21, we went to the first full day at the Ignatian Family Teach-In. The day started with a prayer led by the Boston College School of Theology and Ministry, guest featuring your very own Grace Armstrong. Although I am no stranger to public speaking, it was an entirely new experience to lead 3,000 dedicated Catholics in prayer. Granted I go to a Catholic school, but I have never been baptized, nor have I been an avid church-goer. The adrenaline rush was of another degree, as I stood on the stage speaking to religious activists about finding the God within us and within our world. Afterward, I realized that there was no turning back; I am now part of the Ignatian family. The prayer was followed by a series of more student speakers and advocates calling for social reform. From my fellow students I realized that change really does come from one because, when the cause is powerful, one quickly becomes many. Each person in that room of 3,000 was one person striving to leave their foot print on the world. Each of those foot prints together create the stepping stones to change.

At the end of the day all of the 3,000+ people gathered for a closing liturgy. The altar was set as any other Catholic altar is set. The procession song was the same as any church hymn. The priest seemed the same as any Jesuit priest. However, the liturgy was not any liturgy. It was a Mass of hope, of love, of change, of true faith. The songs were sung in unison, in adoration, in spirit that I have never experienced in my 18 years of life. In one of the closing songs, “We are One Body,” the body of Christ was wholly present. Every single one of the 3,000+ people at the Mass were singing whole-heartedly. Many schools linked arms and swayed back and forth as Pres girls do when they sing the Alma Mater. The liturgy brought together a community of people from all over the world to bond beyond beliefs, borders, or words. This image will stick with me forever because never before have I seen a group of people so strong in their convictions of faith and beliefs. During this time, I was able to be “presente” to myself and the others in the auditorium; the liturgy was a rejuvenation and revelation.

Day 1

The first day of the trip we woke up and went to the Martin Luther King Jr. Center in Atlanta, Georgia. At the center we watched a video about MLK’s life and work for social justice. The video was interesting because it illustrated his life in the context of the other civil rights events. The video included many parallels between MLK and Gandhi. I never understood that MLK got much of his inspiration and nonviolent methods from Gandhi. From the video I realized that Martin Luther King Jr. was not just another activist but he was educated about what he was preaching. He was a man that studied what he preached and ensured that learned from others as much as he learned from books. The museum at the Center was filled with pictures of King and other civil rights activists framed by famous quotes of the decade. After, we were able to visit the birth home of Martin Luther King Jr. It was hard to believe that he had actually lived right there!!

We, then, traveled two hours to Columbus. In Columbus, we attended the opening for the Ignation Family Teach-In. For the evening we sat with 3,000 other people from all over the country to listen to the director of the Ignatian Solidarity Network, students working for justice and other activists. The theme of the Teach-In is “presente,” calling the community to be present to the voiceless. Therefore, each person brought their own story and perspective on how to be “presente” to the oppressed.

Stay tuned to see how the Teach-In progresses tomorrow!

Background

For the past five years Presentation has been going to Columbus, Georgia to attend the SOAWatch vigil. Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Operations, formerly known as the School of the Americas, is a military training school. Soldiers from South America come to the school to be trained by U.S. military personnel. However, in past, SOA graduates have been known to commit atrocities in their native countries, like the 1980 killing of Salvadoran Martyr Oscar Romero or the 1989 murder of six Jesuit priests, their maid, and her daughter. The vigil is held at Fort Benning to remember all of those killed by graduates of the School of the Americas/ WHINSEC. This year five Pres girls are visiting the Ignatian Family Teach-In for Justice and the SOA vigil to celebrate  the 20th Anniversary of the murder of the Jesuit priests. This year is the last year Presentation will be going on this trip because it is the last year the Teach-In will be in Georgia.

If you’d like to know more visit: http://soaw.org/